台風 (Typhoon)

2: たび (Journey)

"Kimiko, look out!"

Kimiko whipped around just in time to see a mamushi snake slithering toward her, fangs bared. Her eyes widened, and she bolted to hide behind Yukio, who pulled out a shuriken and threw it at the snake. He missed, but the snake quickly retreated.

"Sheesh, wouldn't want to end up with a mamushi bite. Those things could kill you if their venom gets in your system," Yukio muttered.

Kimiko shuddered. "We should keep going then. I think we're nearing one of our camps," she said, trying to distract herself from the thought of such deadly creatures.

As they walked through the forest, Kimiko went through the events of the past few days in her mind. Their expedition had gone smoothly the first day, although they had lost most of their food to a pack of Ussuri bears and had been stuck in a terrible thunderstorm. The second and third days were relatively uneventful, but on their fourth day, there were giant hornets on the dried seaweed, spiders in the blanket, and then that mamushi. The whole forest seemed to relish their very presence.

Kimiko was drawn out of her thoughts by Yukio's voice. "We're here. But, ah... Kimiko?"

She glanced around the camp. Overturned barrels of wheat and rice littered the forest floor, squirrels scurried in and out of the sleeping quarters, and there wasn't a soul in sight.

"The Mongols must have gotten to them before we did," Yukio muttered from behind her.

Kimiko stiffened. "No matter. Scoop up some rice in my furoshiki." She tossed the cloth over her shoulder.

Yukio, slightly confused by her odd behavior, caught it and did as she said. When he was finished, Kimiko absentmindedly took back the rice.

"Uh, Kimiko? Is everything alr—"

Without warning, Kimiko grabbed Yukio by the arm, dragging him into one of the soldiers' tents and covering his mouth with her hand. "Shhh... I hear something." she whispered.

A moment later, the pair heard soldiers' footsteps, their armor clanking as they walked. The adventurers waited in silence until the footsteps faded away.

Kimiko stuck her head out of the tent cautiously and motioned to Yukio. They started off in the direction from which the soldiers had come, hoping to find the Mongol base. After a while, they arrived at a break in the trees. The Mongol camp sat on the shoreline about a mile away, its tall barricades casting shadows along the sand.

"Kaito," Kimiko whispered, "we're coming."